Graduate Catalog
Early Childhood/Elementary
Lewis & Clark offers an outstanding 13- to 14-month program that leads to an initial teaching license and a master's degree. Our preservice program for new teachers emphasizes the following:
- Dynamic learning environments that foster caring, equity, and inclusion and promote diverse perspectives.
- Classroom experiences characterized by intellectual debate, a rigorous learning atmosphere, intellectual growth, and a dedication to social justice.
- Educational experiences that cultivate connections between learners and their communities.
- School and classroom environments designed to eliminate the impact of societal and institutional barriers to academic success and personal growth for all students.
Scholarships and Grants
Various scholarships are available to preservice teacher education students. Information about the application and selection process for these funds is available online: www.lclark.edu/graduate/offices/admissions/paying_for_graduate_school/scholarships
About the Oregon Initial I Teaching License
Candidates seeking a license to teach in Oregon who successfully complete any of the licensure options offered by Lewis & Clark and all state-required tests receive institutional recommendation to the Oregon Teacher Standards and Practices Commission (TSPC).
Testing Required for the Oregon Initial I Teaching License
Oregon uses a system of multiple measures to determine whether a candidate is a teacher licensure "program completer." Educators who wish to be recommended for an Oregon Initial I Teaching License (or a teaching license in any state) are required to pass a basic skills test, a civil rights test, a multiple-subjects exam, and/or a subject area test.
Basic skills: Candidates must pass a test of basic skills test. The candidate may choose to take the Praxis I: Pre-Professional Skills Tests (PPST), the California Basic Educational Skills Tests (CBEST), the Washington Educator Skills Test-Basic (WEST-B), or the NES: Essential Academic Skills (NES: EAS) test.
Civil rights: For demonstration of knowledge of civil rights laws, candidates must pass the ORELA test,"Protecting Student and Civil Rights in the Educational Environment test."
Multiple subjects: Authorizations in early childhood and elementary levels require passing scores on a multiple subjects exam. Prior to June 2012, students must take and pass the ORELA: Multiple Subject Examination (MSE). The MSE is criterion-referenced and objective-based, meaning that it is designed to measure a candidate's knowledge and skills in relation to an established standard rather than in relation to the performance of other candidates. In order to pass the MSE, candidates must pass two subtests. The subtest selection depends on whether the candidate has received preparation at an approved Oregon institution (Subtest I and II) or through an accredited out-of-state program (Subtest II and III). Effective September 4, 2012, the NES Elementary Education (Subtests I and II) will be required by Oregon as the official test of this content area, replacing the ORELA: MSE.
Graduates complete all program requirements before becoming eligible for recommendation to TSPC for an Initial I Teaching License.
Those candidates who do not pass the basic skills test, the civil rights test, and the MSE are not considered program completers and are not eligible for initial licensure recommendation in any state. Please note that other states may also require that licensure candidates pass additional tests. Recommendation for an Oregon Substitute Teaching License may be an option.
Applying for Licensure
Candidates must apply for a license directly to TSPC by submitting the appropriate forms, fees, test scores, and transcripts. Information about filing for a license is available from Lewis & Clark's K-12 Educational Career and Licensing Services office, which you can find at www.lclark.edu/graduate/career_and_licensing/k-12.
Licensing Agencies
Lewis & Clark's graduate programs leading to licensure and endorsement are approved under the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) and the Oregon Teacher Standards and Practices Commission (TSPC).
Master of Arts in Teaching With Initial Teaching License, Early Childhood/Elementary Authorizations
Lewis & Clark offers a full-time, 13- to 14-month program for beginning educators in early childhood/elementary education, which is organized around a year of supervised teaching in a Portland-area school, combined with coursework on campus and additional practicum experiences. The Early Childhood/Elementary program prepares students for an Oregon Initial I Teaching License to teach children in prekindergarten through grade 8 in multiple subjects. School placements provide a complete year of experience with children from diverse backgrounds.
M.A.T. Degree Requirements
A minimum of 40 semester hours, including all requirements for licensure listed below:
Licensure Course Requirements
First Summer
| ED 550 | Social, Historical, and Ethical Perspectives on Education | 2 |
| ED 559 | Math for Early Childhood | 2 |
| ED 561 | Child Development and Learning | 2 |
| ED 568 | The Arts, Culture, and Creativity | 2 |
| ED 569 | Health and Physical Education | 1 |
| SCI 580 | Teaching Children About the Natural World | 2 |
Fall Semester
| ED 511 | Field Observation (Early Childhood/Elementary) | 1 |
| ED 514 | Classroom Teaching and Learning I (Early Childhood/Elementary) | 2 |
| ED 562 | Elementary School Mathematics | 2 |
| ED 563 | Classroom Management 1: Early Childhood/Elementary | 1 |
| ED 565 | Reading I: Literacy Development, Pre-K-Grade 8 | 2 |
| ESOL 535A | English Language Learners: Theory | 1 |
| SPED 524 | Special Education for the General Education Teacher | 1 |
| SS 578 | Inquiry/Teaching/Assessment: A Social and Cultural Framework | 2 |
Spring Semester
| ED 515 | Classroom Teaching and Learning II (Early Childhood/Elementary) | 4 |
| MATH 549 | Algebra and Geometry for Early Childhood/Elementary Teachers | 1 |
| ED 564 | Classroom Management 2: Early Childhood/Elementary | 1 |
| ED 566 | Reading II: Literacy Development, K-Grade 8 | 3 |
| ESOL 535B | English Language Learners: Theory in Practice | 1 |
| ED 523 | Teaching and Assessment | 1 |
| SPED 505 | Teaching Special Education Students in the General Education Classroom | 1 |
Second Summer
| ED 516 | Classroom Teaching and Learning III (Early Childhood/Elementary) | 3 |
Candidates continue to co-teach with mentors through the end of the p-K-12 school year. It is expected that student teachers close out the year with their mentors. Candidates may apply for their teaching license upon completion of these courses. It is recommended that students complete their graduate Core requirement during their first summer.
Graduate Core Requirement
A minimum of 2 semester hours of Core Program coursework and one Core convocation
M.A.T. Courses
ED 550 Social, Historical, and Ethical Perspectives on Education
Content: Critical and comprehensive review of education and
schooling in American society. Considers education
in its larger socioeconomic, political,
ideological, and cultural contexts and examines
race, class, gender, and culture in the formal
educational system. Analyzes issues of goals,
funding, governance, curricula, policy, staffing,
and reforms both in historical and contemporary
forms. Participants study education both as a
microcosm of society, reflecting the larger
struggles in the country, and as a
quasi-autonomous entity.
Prerequisites: None.
Restrictions: Admission to a preservice program.
Credits: 2 semester hours.
ED 559 Math for Early Childhood
Content: Introduction to mathematical concepts for grades
pre-K through three including number and
operations, geometry, and measurement in a
problem-solving context. Individually and
culturally responsive mathematics instructional
strategies and assessments for early childhood are
examined and demonstrated throughout the course.
Course content is aligned to Oregon standards and
current national recommendations including the
Principles and Standards from the National Council
of Teachers of Mathematics and the Common Core
State Standards. Children's literature will be
integrated as it pertains to the content of this
course.
Prerequisites: None.
Restrictions: Admission to Early Childhood/Elementary Program.
Credits: 2 semester hours.
ED 561 Child Development and Learning
Content: Discussion, critique, and application of theories
of child development and learning. Through case
studies, cultural narratives, theoretical
constructs, and research, participants explore
children's development within diverse cultural and
family systems, including the cognitive,
affective, psychological, social, moral, identity,
and physiological domains. Topics include multiple
intelligences and ways of knowing, creativity, and
motivation, as well as the influences of social,
cultural, linguistic, familial, and institutional
factors on children's development and learning.
Prerequisites: None.
Restrictions: Admission to Early Childhood/Elementary Program or consent
of instructor.
Credits: 2 semester hours.
ED 568 The Arts, Culture, and Creativity
Content: Participants explore how children and adults think
about and engage in the arts in connection with
other areas of learning and development. Through
creative, imaginative experiences, participants
explore concepts such as patterns, pitch, texture,
line, narration, and color within the fields of
music, visual arts, storytelling, and movement,
enacted within different cultural perspectives.
Emphasis on creativity, imaginative use of the
arts, and understanding the nature and value of
the arts in human lives and cultures.
Prerequisites: None.
Restrictions: Admission to Early Childhood/Elementary Program.
Credits: 2 semester hours.
ED 569 Health and Physical Education
Content: Age-appropriate skill and fitness development,
practical use of the gym and equipment, personal
safety, wellness, and nutrition. Topics include
methods of assessing physical education skills and
integrating physical education and health into the
math and language arts curriculum.
Prerequisites: None.
Restrictions: Admission to Early Childhood/Elementary Program.
Credits: 1 semester hour.
SCI 580 Teaching Children About the Natural World
Content: Promoting children's understanding of the natural
world using everyday materials and observations of
living things in the local environment.
Participants examine their own, as well as
children's, intuitive science notions, while
learning to craft safe classroom inquiries and
field investigations. The course focuses attention
on children's use of language in the context of
learning about science and nature as well as the
development of inquiry skills.
Prerequisites: None.
Restrictions: Admission to Early Childhood/Elementary Program.
Credits: 2 semester hours.
ED 511 Field Observation (Early Childhood/Elementary)
Content: This course provides candidates in the Early
Childhood/Elementary Preservice Program
opportunities to observe teaching and learning in
a variety of school contexts. Students will attend
guided visits to schools with different
demographics and program models in order to better
understand the range of environments in which
teaching and learning take place in local
communities.
Prerequisites: None.
Corequisites: ED-514.
Restrictions: Admission to Early Childhood/Elementary Program.
Credits: 1 semester hour.
ED 514 Classroom Teaching and Learning I (Early Childhood/Elementary)
Content: Part-time student teaching experience in an
elementary classroom. In addition to observing
classroom instruction, the student teacher-intern
serves as apprentice to the mentor teacher by
providing assistance at the teacher's direction
and working with individuals and small groups of
students. Student teacher-interns also observe and
work with small groups at their second
authorization level. Campus seminars devoted to
reflective discussions of teaching, learning, and
assessment practices in diverse contexts are
scheduled throughout the semester.
Prerequisites: None.
Restrictions: Admission to Early Childhood/Elementary Program.
Credits: 2 semester hours.
ED 562 Elementary School Mathematics
Content: Introduction to mathematical concepts for grades
three through six including rational numbers,
proportional reasoning, geometry, and measurement
in a problem-solving context. Mathematics
instructional strategies and assessments for
elementary grades that are individually and
culturally responsive are examined and
demonstrated throughout the course. Course content
is aligned to Oregon standards and current
national recommendations including the Principles
and Standards from the National Council of
Teachers of Mathematics and the Common Core State
Standards.
Prerequisites: None.
Restrictions: Admission to Early Childhood/Elementary Program or consent
of instructor.
Credits: 2 semester hours.
ED 563 Classroom Management 1: Early Childhood/Elementary
Content: Creating a community of support in the classroom.
Emphasizes understanding students' personal needs,
creating positive teacher-student and peer
relationships, creating classroom rules and
procedures within a democratic learning community,
and responding to minor behavior problems.
Prerequisites: None.
Restrictions: Admission to the Early Childhood/Elementary Preservice
Program.
Credits: 1 semester hour.
ED 565 Reading I: Literacy Development, Pre-K-Grade 8
Content: Literacy processes and children's language and
literacy development from birth through the middle
grades. Focus is on theoretical foundations of
literacy, meaning construction across-symbol
systems, early reading and writing behavior,
meaningcentered instructional practices, and basic
knowledge and instructional practices relating to
word recognition skills and comprehension
processes. Introduces students to a range of
individually and culturally responsive
instructional assessment approaches and materials
to promote literacy learning, as well as the
concept of media literacy. Children's literature
will be integrated as it pertains to the content
of this course.
Prerequisites: None.
Restrictions: Admission to Early Childhood/Elementary Program.
Credits: 2 semester hours.
ESOL 535A English Language Learners: Theory
Content: This course is designed to prepare pre-K-12
preservice teachers for meeting the linguistic and
academic needs of English Language Learners by
providing an overview of language acquisitions
theory and program components. Teachers will also
identify resources (personnel and materials) to
effectively serve linguistically diverse
populations.
Prerequisites: None.
Restrictions: Enrollment in a preservice teacher education program.
Credits: 1 semester hour.
SPED 524 Special Education for the General Education Teacher
Content: Inclusion of special education students in general
education classrooms for a significant portion of
the school day is a common enough practice to be
considered a national trend. Special education
students can bring challenges to the classroom
teacher in all areas of educational practice,
perhaps most specifically in instruction and
management. This course will focus on the policy
and procedures that govern special education and
the adaptations in classroom practice necessary to
ensure their success.
Prerequisites: ED-561.
Corequisites: ED-514.
Credits: 1 semester hour.
SS 578 Inquiry/Teaching/Assessment: A Social and Cultural Framework
Content: Understanding and applying inquiry and assessment
within a social and cultural framework that leads
to thematic curriculum development for pre-K
through middle school. Participants explore
children's intuitive notions and reasoning about
social, cultural, and geographic worlds from
developmental, social, historical, and cultural
perspectives. Topics include intercultural
communication and the traditions and contributions
of various groups to American culture, diversity,
democracy, and civic life, with special focus on
Oregon and the Northwest. Students are guided in
teaching and assessment practices that draw from
children's questions and interests. Children's
literature will be integrated as it pertains to
the content of this course.
Prerequisites: None.
Restrictions: Admission to Early Childhood/Elementary Preservice Program.
Credits: 2 semester hours.
ED 515 Classroom Teaching and Learning II (Early Childhood/Elementary)
Content: Intensive student teaching experience. This
experience builds on the teaching begun during the
previous semester. Each student teacher-intern
continues to collaborate with his/her mentor to
take on more and more teaching responsibilities
culminating with the assumption of full-time
teaching responsibility mid-semester. The student
teacher-intern works under the close supervision
of a mentor teacher and a Lewis & Clark faculty
supervisor. Student teacher-interns also complete
observations at their second authorization level.
The student teacher-intern also attends a campus
seminar each week that is devoted to reflective
discussion of teaching, learning, and assessment
practices in diverse contexts as well as school
law, child abuse, and discrimination.
Prerequisites: None.
Restrictions: Admission to Early Childhood/Elementary Program.
Credits: 4 semester hours.
MATH 549 Algebra and Geometry for Early Childhood/Elementary Teachers
Content: Explores older children's development of
mathematical concepts. Promotes a problem solving
stance, through which students explore a wide
range or topics--including proportional
reasoning,
data analysis, algebraic thinking, and geometry.
Priority is placed on ideas that serve as
capstones of elementary mathematics as well as
cornerstones of secondary mathematics, with an
emphasis on developing strategies for equitable
teaching of algebra to all students.
Prerequisites: None.
Restrictions: Admission to the Early Childhood/Elementary Program or
consent of instructor required.
Credits: 1 semester hour.
ED 564 Classroom Management 2: Early Childhood/Elementary
Content: Major emphasis on resolving behavior problems
that occur in the classroom, working with
students' families, and developing individual
behavior plans for students who demonstrate
serious and ongoing behavior problems. Includes a
focus on culturally sensitive classroom
management.
Prerequisites: None.
Restrictions: Admission to the Early Childhood/Elementary Preservice
Program.
Credits: 1 semester hour.
ED 566 Reading II: Literacy Development, K-Grade 8
Content: Continuation of ED 565. Focus on individually and
culturally responsive curriculum and instructional
practices for literacy development in grades K-8.
Gives increased attention to fluent readers,
instruction in the intermediate and middle grades,
classroom organization and implementation, methods
for assessing students' reading and writing
performance, diagnosis of individual needs, and
strategies for linking assessment results with
appropriate curriculum and instruction across the
content areas.
Prerequisites: None.
Restrictions: Admission to Early Childhood/Elementary Program.
Credits: 3 semester hours.
ESOL 535B English Language Learners: Theory in Practice
Content: This course is designed to prepare p-K-12
preservice
teachers for meeting the linguistic and academic
needs of English Language Learners by providing
an
overview of language acquisitions theory and
program components. Teachers will also identify
resources (personnel and materials) to
effectively
serve linguistically diverse populations.
Prerequisites: ESOL 535A.
Credits: 1 semester hour.
ED 523 Teaching and Assessment
Content: In-depth examination of the relationships between
inquiry, teaching, and assessment. Focus on
individually and culturally responsible approaches
to assessing student work and encouraging and
using children's questions and interests to plan
learning experiences. Examines strategies to
assess-student learning and student progress.
Topics include planning and teaching models,
integration of curriculum, and assessment design.
Prerequisites: None.
Restrictions: Admission to Early Childhood/Elementary Program.
Credits: 1 semester hour.
SPED 505 Teaching Special Education Students in the General Education Classroom
Content: Understanding the requirements of special
education legislation litigation, and specially
designed research-based instruction is an
essential first step in the process of ensuring
that general education classrooms provide
appropriate instruction for special education
students. The goals of this course will be to
translate education policies and procedures into
effective classroom practice. Particular emphasis
will be placed on providing appropriate
information for student Individual Education Plans
(IEPs), interpreting IEPs for students in your
classroom, and the processes, procedures, and
techniques for providing appropriate adaptations
for all students with disabilities.
Prerequisites: SPED 524.
Corequisites: ED 515.
Restrictions: Admission to Early Childhood/Elementary Program.
Credits: 1 semester hour.
ED 516 Classroom Teaching and Learning III (Early Childhood/Elementary)
Content: Conclusion of intensive student teaching
experience. This experience builds on and
concludes the teaching begun during the previous
semesters. Each student teacher-intern completes
required full-time teaching responsibility under
the supervision of a mentor teacher and a Lewis &
Clark faculty supervisor. Student teacher-interns
also complete observation and teaching at their
second authorization level.
Prerequisites: None.
Restrictions: Admission to Early Childhood/Elementary Program.
Credits: 3 semester hours.
Graduate Departments and Programs of Study